


Our Past

by Kumikoko



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-13
Updated: 2018-06-13
Packaged: 2019-05-21 15:35:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14918054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kumikoko/pseuds/Kumikoko
Summary: Levi wonders how he and Armin began to date, when they are an unlikely pair. Armin tells their story, and proves they are canon.





	Our Past

**Author's Note:**

> There are a lot of people who wonder why Levi and Armin are paired together. As if anyone actually has to ask. If they read the manga, they'd understand. Regardless, I wanted Levi and Armin to tell their story though their own eyes. For those of you who understand why Levi and Armin are a good pair, you'll like this fic. 
> 
> And in some ways, I sympathize with Armin a lot because he's always been bullied and attacked by people. I too am often bullied, attacked, and insulted, usually by the Attack on Titan community. It used to be that popular girls in school would pick on me but these days, I usually get a lot of hate mail, and it's rather upsetting. I understand what it's like to be bullied so I've never bullied anyone before in my life. Sometimes, I even leave comments on fanfictions I like, and, the next thing I know, the author is cyber bullying me, along with his or her friends. It really boggles my mind. So I relate to Armin alot. I know what it's like, and that might show in this fanfiction, his distress at being bullied which is similar to my own. Although, this fanfiction is about him, and Levi, and their struggles, not my own.

**Our Past**

 

The war between the Marleyan’s and the Eldians was over. Marley’s military had effectively been crushed, and many surrounding countries had been liberated of Marley’s oppressive reign. Eldians and surviving soldiers of Paradis Island could live out the rest of their lives in relative peace, until the flames of war inevitably sparked again.

War was omnipresent, and consistent, because at their cores, humans were not a tolerant species. Those who claimed to be the most tolerant were often the most intolerant of a group. In this way, wars were created and waged as a way of life. But the Eldians war was over, because after every war was a uneasy, finite peace.

No one knew that better than Levi Ackerman, who understood that humans were trash. There were individuals who meant well, but even their good intentions often backfired in the worst possible ways. The other thing he understood was that the good died young. He had seen many soldiers die prematurely during war, but one death would always stand out to him;

Erwin Smith’s death had been hard on everyone. The Eldians had suffered a critical blow to their morale, and intelligence department when he died. However, a young soldier, brought back from the death by Levi’s own hands, rose up to the challenge of being Erwin and had succeeded in unimaginable ways that no one had thought to be possible. Levi was colored impressed with Armin Arlert’s dedication to the war, and Erwin’s memory.

At first, everyone had been resistant towards Armin becoming the new Erwin. One soldier, Floch, had specifically told Armin that he should have died. There were many soldiers who had shared those same sediments. Didn’t they understand that some people killed themselves over that type of rhetoric? Did they care that they were bullying another human being? Floch sure didn’t care, because his disparaging comments continued, and more then once, Levi almost intervened.

Soldiers, like humans, were meant to get along with each other, and support each other. However, Floch’s crew and followers had pitted themselves against Armin, when it was most important for everyone to rally together. They had even blamed Armin for Erwin’s death. Who did they think they were to do that? _I made that choice_. Levi remembered, and felt old complex, contradictory emotions well up inside of his heart.

There were some days he wondered what would have happened if he had forced Erwin to live against his will, but then he remembered all of the good that Armin had done for the world who only ever attacked, and bullied him, and knew he had made the right choice. It was true there were some people who still didn’t see Armin’s importance, but as far as Levi was concerned, they could fuck off because they were letting their emotions get in the way of logic. Stupid fucks. Emotions got people killed. Levi learned that early on in life, and succeeded in becoming humanity’s strongest by closing his heart off to the world.

All of that had began to change when he had saved Armin, and Eren’s life for the first time. Armin had been trying to pull Eren out of his titan form. That tiny blonde, blue eyed soldier had expressed a rare type of courage that Levi had never witnessed before. That brave nature of Armin’s exposed itself when he pleaded for Eren’s life in front of a firing squad. Levi had been watching from afar, and even then, he had acknowledged, to himself, that although Armin was lithe, he was courageous.

As Levi thought about it, he figured Armin was braver than Erwin. He never would have thought that if he hadn’t spent so much time with Armin, as soldiers and later as friends. Levi had seen Armin’s burn wounds that he endured simply to buy Eren time to take Bertholt out. That had taken a lot of resolve, and had required endurance. Could Erwin have endured the same? Possibly.

One thing was clear to Levi: He wouldn’t change a thing about the past.

“Hey, Levi?” Levi snapped out of his thoughts and looked to Armin, who sat across the table from him. “You have that distant look in your eyes again.” Armin noted with concern, while he placed his hand on his cheek. He was twenty one, and was officially a man now, but he still retained a youthful appearance despite his grim, and haunted eyes.

“Oh. I was just wondering how we became a couple when I am old enough to be your father.” Levi said, thinking back to the first time that he kissed Armin. Armin had been eighteen, and maybe he had looked too much like Erwin for his own good. Armin blinked at Levi, and sipped at the cup he held in his other hand.

“Well…” Armin began, and set the cup down. “I suppose it begins with me…because I had heard rumors about you being the strongest soldier known to humanity. I admired you before I even knew you, and then you saved me and Eren from the titans not once, but twice where you actually took the time to save us even though we were just stupid kids then.” Armin admitted, as he reminisced about the past that had pathed the way for a future to form between them.

“I was just doing my job.” Levi dismissed, and picked up his own cup from the wooden table and took a long drink from it. Throughout Levi’s years in the military, he saved countless soldiers lives, most who he never knew personally. Armin shifted a bit in his chair, and folded his arms on the table.

“Even so, I admired you more then ever, and when I joined the survey corps, and got to serve near you, I got to see your strength first hand. As much as I wanted to be you, I wanted to…well, I don’t know. I think everything began to change for me when you comforted me, when we were around the campfire. I was upset over murdering that female soldier and what you said to me was about the kindest thing anyone has ever said to me.” Armin confided in Levi, despite how vulnerable the truth made him feel.

A frustrated sigh escaped Levi’s lips. “People are shit. You’ve only ever been polite with them, yet they attack you, and then their shitty atheist friends join in to bully you.” Armin paused, and looked up at Levi questioningly.

“You’re not an atheist? I thought—” Armin started, but stopped when Levi waved his hand dismissively at him.

“I don’t know what I believe, but atheist Floch and his puffy eyebrow atheist friends are shitty human beings. I wanted to punch them for bullying you, and disrespecting our relationship.” Levi stated, and lifted a leg over his other one. Armin understood what Levi meant, and smiled sadly.

“Unfortunately, compliments can backfire…Floch thought I was gay and I guess he wasn’t wrong after all, but I never had romantic interest in him. He wrote well. That was it.” Armin murmured, fidgeting with his hands at the uncomfortable memories that revolved around Floch and his unruly gang. He had been raised and taught to not bully others. Was Floch not raised that way?

“Actually, I often wondered if you were gay for Eren.” Levi spoke up, since that was a question he had that had always bothered him. Armin’s smile fell, and he looked down at the table solemnly.

“Well, I did…I loved him for a long time…but he was always running off ahead of me and when you gave me a second chance at life…he changed. Eren didn’t want anything to do with me anymore. He didn’t even defend me when Floch was confronting me and I guess I felt betrayed, so maybe I distanced myself from him too…but you know I really don’t want to talk about Eren.” Armin answered uncomfortably, and tightened his hold on his arms. Levi reached out and clasped his hand over one of Armin’s arms to comfort him. Armin looked back at Levi, with ashamed eyes. He knew it must be awkward for Levi to hear him talk about Eren in this context.

“And Jean?” Levi pressed, since they were on the subject of ex-potential boyfriends. Armin relaxed a little and laughed.

“Now you just sound jealous.” Armin pointed out, and grabbed Levi’s hands in his to play with. “But, while Jean is a friend of mine, why would anyone think I would have interest in the guy who kept picking fights with my best friend and who would shamelessly hit on Mikasa who I felt was akin to a sister I never had?”

_I never thought of it that way before_. Levi thought to himself, and let Armin play with his ashen, calloused fingers. Armin’s own hands were softer, in comparison, and Levi kind of liked that, in the same way he liked Armin’s soft hair.

“Besides, even on his best days, Jean was an cowardly asshole. Everyone thinks of him as this leader, but I don’t understand it because Eren has always been more of a leader then Jean was because Eren is willing to make hard choices. Jean just believes in this fantasy world that just doesn’t exist, where if we’re just all nice to each other then somehow a pacifist world will exist but there are always bad people like Floch that he doesn’t account for. People who will shut you down and who will insult your interests just for the sake of being a troll.” Armin explained glumly, recalling just how much people had bullied him when he had only ever been friendly to them. He had even tried to share his books, and his knowledge with them as peace offerings.

And just like that, Levi knew he never had to be concerned that Armin would take interest in Jean. By Armin’s own account, he explained in no uncertain terms why he and Jean never would have been a couple. Armin was even amused that some people would have thought them to be a potential couple. It wasn’t like Jean had ever been there, or had done anything for Armin. Levi had consistently saved Armin’s life, and comforted him.

“Forget about them. They’re just trash from the slums.” Levi told Armin, with another dismissive shrug of his shoulders. As someone who had came from the slums, Levi knew Floch’s type well, even though Floch was the type of trash who had been spoiled by Daddy. Armin nodded a bit as he leaned back in the chair, and then he sighed. He had grown up in a poor neighborhood, where bullies were plentiful.

None of them had believed in God.

“I suppose you’ll want to know about Annie next.” Armin figured, and propped his arms up on the back of the chair. “I realize she was a brainwashed woman, and that she was forced to make some of the choices that she made. However, maybe I am biased, but she was responsible for the deaths of so many people I knew, and cared for.” Armin commented, as his eyes became haunted again by recollections of the past. “And with how strong Annie was, there was never a reason for her to kill anyone, yet she did crush them all as if they were just bugs. That lack of sympathy and humanity for others was shocking to me.”

While Armin made some good points, Levi wanted him to elaborate more on the female titan shifter. “I heard that she spared your life, when she lifted your hood and saw that it was you.” Levi mentioned, knowing a lot of the higher ups had even remarked on that unusual occurrence.

“Are people really romanticizing that!?” Armin exclaimed, with his mouth agape. “They know nothing of Annie then, because she has always been determined to accomplish her mission. She spared me because I was not Eren. Annie was seeking Eren out, and she thought I was no threat to her. There just hadn’t been a reason for her to kill—I’m sorry, are people seriously romanticizing that?”

Now it was Levi’s turn to laugh, amused by how shocked, and bothered Armin was that some people had thought that Armin might have had a fling with Annie. It was the most ridiculous thing Armin had ever heard and it showed on his face.

“Do they not remember how many of our comrades that Annie killed? The lives she stole?” Armin stressed, while he waved his hands with sheer frustration at the concept. “I know I took lives as well, but only when the mission called for it. I did not kill people indiscriminately, and unlike her, I never betrayed anyone.” Armin was ranting now, and Levi shook his head with amusement. He loved the rare moments where Armin became lively and animated. “She trained alongside us. She heard our dreams and our fears. Annie saw we weren’t devils, but she still betrayed us, and murdered those she trained with. Yet people thought we had a fling? What, because we’re both blonde? We look like we could be siblings!”

Oh, yes. Levi enjoyed seeing Armin so worked up, and passionate about what he believed in, and he always had from the first time he heard Armin talk about the outside world with that childlike innocence, and wonder in his blue eyes. Armin was a man now, yet those old passionate flames had reawakened.

“What is wrong with people!?” Armin shouted in distress, and clasped his hands over his heads. His elbows pressed against the wood of the table, and he let out a long, frustrated grunt. Levi briefly wondered if he pushed the topic too far, and set a hand on Armin’s shoulder, to remind him that he was here for him. Armin took in a few breaths to calm himself. “She let Marco die…and she wanted to hand Eren over to an enemy who would kill him…but people thought I had interest in her?” Now Armin just sounded pained, and defeated.

“Be that as it may, we can not change people’s opinions, no matter how asinine they are.” Levi reminded Armin, and rubbed his shoulder sympathetically. Armin sighed again, and stretched his arms out on the table. He shifted just a bit to again grab on to Levi’s hand with both of his.

“I know a lot of people are uncomfortable with the gap in our age…but I don’t think we’re doing anything wrong because we didn’t get together until I was eighteen. We’ve known each other for years before that, and you’ve always been there for me in ways no one else has.” Armin reasoned with appreciation, and he lifted his head to smile up at Levi.

“Don’t make it sound so noble. After growing up in the Underground, I would have fucked you way before you were eighteen, just because you remind me of Erwin.” Levi reminded Armin, who flushed pink at the lewd thought.

“I suppose you would have…and some days I still think you only love me because I am a younger Erwin, and the only one you have at that.” Armin admitted, voicing a concern he had had for years. Levi pulled his hands away from Armin and shrugged.

“Fuck if I know…but even if I am a bad guy like that, Erwin’s not around anymore for me to flit to. In this way, you’re mine.” Levi asserted with a confident role of his shoulders. Armin smiled a little at Levi’s possessive comment, and leaned over the table to press their lips together. Levi scoffed a bit, and then he returned the kiss.

“You’re right, I am yours, and there’s nothing strange about it.” Armin stated, and pressed their foreheads together. He closed his eyes, and enjoyed the peaceful moment between them. “People can think what ever they want to of our relationship…but no one can deny that we make the most sense, all things considered.”

Levi smirked as he set a hand on Armin’s cheek, and then pressed their lips together again, while the spring air brushed against their face. “Damn straight, Erwin.” Levi teased, and snickered as Armin huffed jealously and smacked him playfully. “I love you, Armin.” Levi confessed then, not for the first time.

“Just shut up and kiss me.” Armin demanded, and grabbed the front of Levi’s shirt to pull him closer for a domineering kiss, the likes of which Erwin had specialized in. Levi hummed appreciatively into the kiss.


End file.
